By Denver Post Editorial Board
February 7, 2017

It’s no secret in Colorado that our state and federal gas taxes aren’t able, by far, to keep up with the demand for new roads and the upkeep of those already in place — and often clogged with traffic.

So we hope Coloradans pay attention this session to various efforts afoot to fill the gap. As thousands of newcomers move to the state each year, the strain on our transportation infrastructure will only increase, and there just isn’t the money available to pay for it.

One straightforward fix appears hopelessly out of the question. As The Denver Post’s Brian Eason recently reported, polling by the influential Colorado Contractors Association, which has for years supported raising taxes to support our struggling transportation system, shows little appetite among voters for raising the gas tax.

“We’ve done quite a bit of polling over the last two years and have found that the prospect of voters increasing their own gas tax is very slim,” said Tony Milo, of the contractors group.

“They are actually much more open to some other types of taxes than they are to gas taxes.”

And little wonder. Asking voters to increase that tax, especially when those dependent on gasoline-powered cars know that their hybrid and electric driving cohorts would largely escape the increase, does seem foolhardy.

The news comes as Republican and Democratic lawmakers are considering going to voters this November to increase sales taxes to fund transportation spending. Should voters approve a tweak to the 2.9 percent statewide sales tax by 0.5 percent, as much as $514 million could be raised in the next fiscal year.

We’ve long bemoaned the fact that the gas tax, which was last increased in 1991, isn’t doing the job. As Eason reports, advances in fuel efficiency combined with inflation have eroded the power of the tax significantly. The 22-cents-per-gallon tax pulls in 30 percent less than it did in 2000.

What does that really mean? Consider that back in 1991, the state spent about $125.70 per person a year on transportation. By 2015, the state had added 2.1 million people, who are driving 2.6 billion more miles than in 1991, spending per person had dropped to $68.94.

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Republicans and Democrats are negotiating a deal to pump money into roads, but opposition is mounting

By Brian Eason and John Frank, The Denver Post
January 22, 2017

Colorado needs $9 billion to improve roads and alleviate traffic congestion in the next 10 years — a number so large that state lawmakers are entertaining a once-unthinkable solution: a tax hike.

Democratic and Republican leaders are negotiating a measure for the November ballot to increase taxes and generate billions of dollars for transportation projects across the state, including the expansion of Interstate 25 north and south of Denver and Interstate 70 through the mountains.

The early discussions represent a significant shift in the political mood at the Capitol, particularly in a state where all tax hikes must go to the voters and conservative forces hold immense influence. The proposal, most likely a sales-tax increase, is expected to include other tax cuts in the first years as an offset.

If the legislature referred a statewide tax hike to the ballot, it would be the first of its kind in 25 years.

The only other tax hike that lawmakers put on the ballot since the approval of the Taxpayer’s Bill of Rights (TABOR) in 1992 was Proposition AA in 2013 — which voters essentially sanctioned a year earlier with the passage of a constitutional amendment legalizing recreational pot sales.

Sandra Hagen Solin with Fix Colorado Roads, an organization pushing for a deal, said lawmakers are realizing “that the public is increasingly becoming frustrated with the transportation system.”

“It’s remarkable that the conversation is occurring,” she continued. “And I think that’s why we are encouraged by the potential of a solution being brought forward before the session ends.”

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Jan. 3, 2017

Carpoolers Need Three to Ride for Free on CDOT’S HOV Express Lanes
I-25 and US 36 Express Lanes are now HOV 3 +  

DENVER – The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) and the High Performance Transportation Enterprise (HPTE) today remind carpoolers that CDOT’s High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Express Lanes is now HOV 3+. The change began Jan. 1, 2017 and HOV 3+ equals a driver and at least two passengers.

The change affects the US 36 and I-25 Express Lanes, two corridors that offer free carpooling in the Express Lanes. The move to HOV 3+ is needed to provide uncongested travel now and in the future on the Express Lanes as well as to provide funding to help offset costs of the lane including operations and maintenance.

CDOT and HPTE are working with the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG), the Regional Transportation District (RTD), Smart Commute Metro North, Commuting Solutions, North Front Range Metropolitan Planning Organization (NFRMPO), Lyft, Uber and others to help people find and use additional ways to carpool or take other modes of transportation. To explore different options, visit the HOV 3+ solutions website here. Drivers also always have the option of driving in the free general purpose lanes.

Carpool purists, drivers who use their Switchable HOV Transponder in carpool mode only, will be able to receive the $15 transponder for free in spring 2017 as another way to ease the transition. Drivers can get a Switchable HOV Transponder at ExpressToll.com.

Learn more at expresslanes.codot.gov.

About Express Lanes: Express Lanes increase roadway capacity and help to manage congestion on the highways. The use of toll pricing during peak travel times reduces delays, manages congestion and maintains reliable travel times. Express Lanes are currently open on I-25 between downtown Denver and 120th Avenue, US 36 between Denver and Boulder, and on I-70 between Idaho Springs and Empire.

About CDOT: www.codot.gov

About the High Performance Transportation Enterprise (HPTE): The HPTE operates as a government-owned, independent business within CDOT. It searches out innovative ways to finance projects to help Colorado fulfill its commitment to increase travel choices through options that include Express Lanes, transit, biking, walking and carpooling. For more information, visit www.coloradohpte.com.

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Representative Mike Foote, The Daily Camera
Dec. 29, 2016

Corporate influence over our government is widespread and nowhere more apparent than on our highway to Denver.

Much has already been written about the coming Jan. 1 change on the U.S. 36 managed lanes from HOV 2 to HOV 3. I do not agree with the change, nor do many of Boulder County’s elected officials. But here’s the problem: it doesn’t matter what we think and it doesn’t matter what you think. That’s because the impending change was included in the contract signed four years ago after closed-door negotiations between state officials and the Plenary Group, the company that built the managed lanes and now collects the tolls charged to those who drive on them without a passenger or (soon) two.

In its public statements and telephone town hall meetings, the Colorado Department of Transportation and its High Performance Transportation Enterprise maintain that the HOV 3 switch is designed to keep the managed lane from getting too crowded. That’s true, but only half of the story. The 2013 contract called for a switch to HOV 3 in January 2017 regardless of how crowded the lane was at the time. Any modification of that predetermined date would be a breach of contract and subject the state to massive penalties. In other words, we must switch to HOV 3 in 2017 even if the managed lane were as empty as a gym on New Year’s Eve.

The Plenary Group was not elected or appointed, of course, but it has more power over a public highway than any citizen, legislator, or even the governor.

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